The Honourable
Andrew Giles
MP
Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs
Assumed office
1 June 2022
Prime MinisterAnthony Albanese
Preceded byAlex Hawke
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Scullin
Assumed office
7 September 2013
Preceded byHarry Jenkins
Majority14.4%
Personal details
Born (1973-07-31) 31 July 1973
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Political partyLabor
SpouseDr Jillian Constable
Children2
Alma materUniversity of Melbourne
ProfessionLawyer and politician
Websitewww.andrewgiles.com.au

Andrew James Giles (born 31 July 1973) is an Australian politician. He has been a Labor member of the Australian House of Representatives since September 2013, representing the Division of Scullin, Victoria. He is currently the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs. Giles joined the ALP when he was eighteen, and – prior to his election to Parliament – worked as a principal lawyer at Slater and Gordon in Melbourne, practising in employment law.[1] Giles previously served as Shadow Assistant Minister for Schools between 2016 and 2019, and Shadow Minister for Multicultural Affairs and Shadow Minister for Cities and Urban Infrastructure from 2019 to 2022. Giles also previously served as one of the two federal parliamentary convenors of the Labor Left faction, along with Pat Conroy.[2]

Early life and education

Giles was born in Melbourne on 31 July 1973.[3] His mother was born in the United Kingdom, making him a British citizen by descent; he renounced his dual citizenship before standing for parliament in 2013.[4] Giles attended high school at Scotch College, Melbourne. Giles has a Bachelor of Arts and Laws from the University of Melbourne. Before entering parliament, he was a principal solicitor for Slater and Gordon and as a senior associate at Holding Redlich lawyers and consultants.[3] He acted as a solicitor for refugees stranded aboard the MV Tampa.[5] Giles also worked as a senior advisor for the Bracks and Brumby Governments in Victoria.[3] He was secretary of the Socialist Left in Victoria.[6]

Parliamentary career

Giles was elected to parliament at the 2013 federal election, replacing the retiring Harry Jenkins in the Division of Scullin. He immediately took up a position as Labor's cities taskforce and has engaged in an Australia-wide cities listening tour.[7] He is co-chair of Parliamentary friends of Amnesty International, and the deputy chair of the Parliament's Northern Europe group of its IPU members.[8]

In 2016 he was elevated to the position of the Shadow Assistant Minister for Schools. In 2019 he became a member of Labor's Shadow Ministry. His portfolios included: Multicultural Affairs, Cities and Urban Infrastructure. He also served as the Shadow Minister Assisting for Immigration and Citizenship.[9] In this role Giles led Labor's campaign to stop the Morrison Government's attempts to privatise Australia's visa system.[10] He was also responsible for Labor's ‘reboot’ with multicultural communities, including the establishment of a Multicultural Caucus Committee to inform future policy development.[11]

Personal life

Giles has two children and lives with his wife, Dr Jillian Constable.[1] In the 1990s, he played guitar in an indie rock band called Ether, along with James Cecil, who went on to play in bands such as Architecture in Helsinki.

References

  1. 1 2 Andrew Giles MP | Australian Labor Party
  2. ↑ Crowe, David (28 October 2018). "New trade tensions inside Labor as Left faction pushes for greater labour restrictions". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 "Andrew Giles MP". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  4. ↑ Citizenship Register – 45th Parliament
  5. ↑ Giles Sounded Out As Tanner Replacement
  6. ↑ High Profile Tanner Replacement Sought
  7. ↑ "Cities Taskforce Listening Tour". Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  8. ↑ "About Andrew". Archived from the original on 18 October 2015. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  9. ↑ "Current Shadow Ministry List".
  10. ↑ "Liberal party claims declaration of a $165k donation by Morrison ally was a mistake". TheGuardian.com. 5 February 2020.
  11. ↑ "'You're not from Australia': Labor's multiculturalism reboot". 24 January 2020.
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